[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1098 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1098

  To amend title 38, United States Code, to prohibit the Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs from employing individuals who has been convicted of a 
  felony and medical personnel who have had their medical licenses or 
       credentials revoked or suspended, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 11, 2017

   Mr. Flake introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
             referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend title 38, United States Code, to prohibit the Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs from employing individuals who has been convicted of a 
  felony and medical personnel who have had their medical licenses or 
       credentials revoked or suspended, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Clean Up the Department of Veterans 
Affairs Act of 2017''.

SEC. 2. PROHIBITION ON EMPLOYMENT BY SECRETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS OF 
              INDIVIDUALS CONVICTED OF CERTAIN FELONIES AND MEDICAL 
              PERSONNEL WHO HAVE HAD THEIR MEDICAL LICENSES OR 
              CREDENTIALS REVOKED OR SUSPENDED.

    (a) Individuals Convicted of Felonies.--Section 709 of title 38, 
United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new 
subsections:
    ``(d)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), the Secretary may 
not--
            ``(A) hire in or transfer to any position at the Department 
        any person who has been convicted of a State or Federal 
        criminal offense--
                    ``(i) for which the minimum term of imprisonment is 
                more than one year; and
                    ``(ii) that substantially relates to the position; 
                or
            ``(B) employ in any position at the Department any person 
        who, after the date of the enactment of the Clean Up the 
        Department of Veterans Affairs Act of 2017, is convicted of a 
        criminal offense described in subparagraph (A).
    ``(2)(A) Paragraph (1) shall not apply with respect to a conviction 
of a State or Federal criminal offense if--
            ``(i) the records of such conviction have been expunged 
        pursuant to an order by a court of competent jurisdiction; or
            ``(ii) during the 10-year period beginning on the date of 
        such conviction, the person who was convicted of such criminal 
        offense has not been convicted of any other State or Federal 
        criminal offense for which the minimum term of imprisonment is 
        more than one year.
    ``(B) Paragraph (1) shall not apply in a case in which the person 
being hired or transferred is being hired or transferred as part of a 
program intended specifically to help veterans who have been convicted 
of a State or Federal criminal offense for which the minimum term of 
imprisonment is more than one year.
    ``(3) The Director of the Office of Personnel Management shall, for 
purposes of paragraph (1), issue guidance on which criminal offenses 
substantially relate to which positions at the Department.
    ``(4) Before hiring any individual for a position at the 
Department, the Secretary shall conduct a background check to determine 
whether the individual has been convicted of any offenses described in 
paragraph (1).''.
    (b) Prohibition on Employment of Individuals Who Have Had Medical 
Licenses or Credentials Revoked or Suspended.--
            (1) In general.--Section 7402 of such title is amended by 
        adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(h)(1) The Secretary may not employ, transfer, or hire any 
individual in a position listed in section 7401(1) of this title who 
has had a license or credential relating to such position revoked or 
suspended by a lawful licensing authority pursuant to a finding by the 
lawful licensing authority that the individual is dyscompetent, the 
individual is incompetent, or the services provided by the individual 
do not meet the standards prescribed by the lawful licensing authority 
for such services.
    ``(2) Before transferring or hiring any individual in a position 
listed in section 7401(1) of this title, the Secretary shall conduct a 
background check, including by searching the State medical licensing 
board of each State in which the employee is licensed or practices and 
the National Practitioner Databank or any successor databank, to 
determine whether the individual has had a license or credential 
relating to such position revoked or suspended in any State.''.
            (2) Termination of current employees.--As soon as 
        practicable after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
        Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall begin the process of 
        terminating the employment of each individual employed by the 
        Secretary in violation of section 7402(h) of title 38, United 
        States Code, as added by paragraph (1).
    (c) Relation to Other Provisions of Law.--
            (1) In general.--Any provision of title 5, United States 
        Code, or subchapter V of chapter 74 of title 38, United States 
        Code, otherwise applicable to the termination of an employee 
        under subsection (b)(2) of this section, section 709(d) of 
        title 38, United States Code, as added by subsection (a), or 
        section 7402(h) of such title, as added by subsection (b)(1), 
        shall apply to the termination, except to the extent such 
        provision of title 5, United States Code, or subchapter V of 
        chapter 74 of title 38, United States Code, conflicts with, and 
        is superseded by, subsection (b)(2) of this section, section 
        709(d) of such title, or section 7402(h) of such title.
            (2) Merit system principles.--The Secretary shall carry out 
        any termination described in paragraph (1) in a manner 
        consistent with the merit system principles set forth in 
        section 2301(b) of title 5, United States Code.
            (3) Limitation on period of review of appeals.--In any case 
        in which an appeal of a termination described in paragraph (1) 
        of an employee is submitted to the Merit Systems Protection 
        Board for review, the Merit Systems Protection Board shall take 
        such actions as may be necessary to ensure that, 
        notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Board issues a 
        decision on such appeal not later than 30 days after the date 
        on which the employee receives notification from the Secretary 
        of such termination.
            (4) Rule of construction.--Subsection (b)(2), section 
        709(d) of title 38, United States Code, as added by subsection 
        (a), and section 7402(h) of such title, as added by subsection 
        (b)(1), shall not be construed to deprive or waive for any 
        individual any employment protection or due process requirement 
        in effect on the day before the date of the enactment of this 
        Act, except as provided in paragraph (1) of this subsection.

SEC. 3. DISCLOSURE OF DISCIPLINARY ACTION WITH RESPECT TO HEALTH CARE 
              PROVIDERS UNDER THE LAWS ADMINISTERED BY THE SECRETARY OF 
              VETERANS AFFAIRS.

    (a) Disclosure of Disciplinary Action With Respect to Health Care 
Employees.--Notwithstanding section 552a of title 5, United States 
Code, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall, with respect to each 
individual appointed under section 7401 of title 38, United States 
Code, for which disciplinary action has been taken by the Secretary, 
provide to the State medical licensing board of each State in which the 
individual is licensed or practices, and to the National Practitioner 
Databank or any successor databank, information regarding such 
disciplinary action.
    (b) Disclosure of Disciplinary Action With Respect to Non-
Department Providers.--
            (1) In general.--Notwithstanding section 552a of title 5, 
        United States Code, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall, 
        with respect to each non-Department health care provider for 
        which disciplinary action has been taken by the Secretary, 
        provide to the State medical licensing board of each State in 
        which the provider is licensed or practices, and to the 
        National Practitioner Databank or any successor databank, 
        information regarding such disciplinary action.
            (2) Report to congress.--Not later than one year after the 
        date of the enactment of this Act, and not less frequently than 
        annually thereafter, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 
        submit to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and 
        the Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the House of 
        Representatives a report on all non-Department health care 
        providers with respect to which disciplinary action was taken 
        by the Secretary during the year preceding the submittal of the 
        report.
            (3) Non-department health care provider defined.--In this 
        subsection, the term ``non-Department health care provider'' 
        means a health care provider that is not a health care provider 
        of the Department of Veterans Affairs.
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